Statistics fail president on Iraq

One year ago, Vice President Dick Cheney addressed the annual Veterans of Foreign Wars convention with these words: ``Simply stated, there is no doubt that Saddam Hussein now has weapons of mass destruction. There is no doubt he is amassing them to use against our friends, our allies and against us.''

What a difference a year makes. Twelve months later Americans have learned that the re-creation of Iraq has been anything but simple.

Speaking Tuesday to 6,000 American Legionnaires, President Bush gave an unapologetic defense of the pacification of Iraq, bolstering his argument with impressive numerical evidence of success: 8,200 tons of ammunition seized, 1,100 detainees, 200 raids, 42 out of 55 Iraqis in Saddam's regime captured.

But notably absent were the numbers that Americans have yet to hear: How many U.S. soldiers will be needed to bring peace to Iraq and how many billions to bring it prosperity.

Omitted also was any admission of failure. In his 3,300-word speech, the president used not a single sentence to explain the all-too-obvious mistakes that have mired American efforts. By refusing to acknowledge what has gone wrong, the president makes it harder to win support for the sacrifices required to make things right in Iraq.

Even as the president persists in painting events in Iraq in only the most flattering light, more Americans every week lose confidence and become disillusioned.

The latest Newsweek poll shows that Americans already believe it's taking too long and costing too much. Sixty percent of those surveyed believe America needs to cut back spending in Iraq. Sixty-nine percent think that America will be trapped in Iraq for years to come.

American impatience should be expected. What is surprising is how ineffectively the White House has countered it. White House wordsmiths have yet to give the president a persuasive message summoning the national patience and purpose that's needed to see this through.

In his speech, the president gave the same homily he has since before the war: ``Building a free and peaceful Iraq will require a substantial commitment of time and resources.'' He's right, but unconvincing.

Bush persuaded the country to trust his decision to wage a war of choice on Iraq. Now, Bush needs to apply the same skills toward persuading Americans of the need to stay in Iraq.

Public opinion is at the tipping point. For the first time, the post-combat death toll of American soldiers surpassed that of the war and there is a growing chorus of experts who believe more troops are required. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld has said that American commanders in Iraq will have as many soldiers as they need. But both the General Accounting Office and Pentagon insiders have said that our military commitments have stretched U.S. ground forces too thin: The Army simply has no one left to send.

After the blood, sweat and tears shed in Iraq, we can't retreat now. It's in the national interest for Iraq to become a democratic success story. But Americans should be wary of any plan to dispatch more troops there. Public consent will simply take pressure off Bush to do what he should have done from the start -- internationalize the nation-building effort.

Bringing in the United Nations would spread the sacrifice and give the world community a stake and a voice in Iraq's rebuilding. If there is one lesson Americans learned from Vietnam, it is the painful consequences of blind loyalty.